346 INDEX. 



very fierce in the defence of her young ; at other seasons 

 fearful, timid, and harmless ; never attempts to bite or any 

 way injure its pursuers; manner of escaping, when hunted 

 by a dog or a wolf; the Indians pursue it to make em- 

 broidery with its quills, and eat its flesh ; circumstances con- 

 cerning it remaining to be known ; little known with pre- 

 cision, except what offers in a state of captivity ; descrip- 

 tion of one kept in an iron cage ; the porcupine of America 

 differs much from that of the ancient continent ; two kinds, 

 the couando and the urson ; description of both, iii. 210. 



Porcupine of the Sea, described, v. 109. 



Pork, unpalatable with us in summer, is the finest eating in 

 warmer latitudes, and preferable to hog's flesh in Europe, 

 ii. 206. 



Porpoise, a fish less than a grampus, with the snout of a hog ; 

 its description and habits ; a fishery for them along the 

 Western Isles of Scotland, in the summer season, when they 

 abound on that shore ; live to a considerable age, though 

 some say not above twenty-five or thirty years ; sleep with 

 the snout above water ; possess, porportionably to their bulk, 

 the manners of whales ; places where they seek for prey ; 

 destroy the nets of fishermen on the coasts of Cornwall ; 

 manner of killing them in the Thames ; yield a large quan- 

 tity of oil ; the lean of some, not old, said to be as well 

 tasted as veal ; caviar prepared from the eggs of this fish, 

 v. 56. 



Ports choked up with sand by the vehemence of the wind, 

 i. 297. 



Pouch, or bag, of the civet, differs in its opening from that of 

 the rest of the weasel kind ; description of it, iii. 103. Of 

 the bustard, under the tongue, capable of holding near 

 seven quarts of water, iv. 159. Of the pelican, hides as 

 many fish as will serve sixty hungry men for a meal ; its 

 description, 361. 



Poultry, general characteristics of the poultry kind ; they live 

 together; and each conscious of his strength, seldom tries 

 a second combat, where he has been once worsted ; kept 

 in the same district, or fed in the same yard, they learn 

 the arts of subordination ; the young of the kind, not fed 

 with meat put into their mouths, peck their food ; the fe- 

 male intent on providing food for her young clutch, and 

 scarce takes any nourishment at all ; among the habits of 

 this class of birds is the peculiarity of dusting themselves ; 

 nearly all domestic birds of this kind, maintained in our 

 yards, are of foreign extraction; the courtship of this kind 

 is short, and the congress fortuitous ; the male takes no heed 

 of his offspring ; though timorous with birds of prey, he is 

 incredibly bold among his own kind ; the sight of a male of 

 his own species produces a combat ; the female takes all 



